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Court of the Revenant
The '''Court of the Revenant '''was a secret organization that existed within the upper tiers of the Sith Empire during the era of the Galactic Republic. Led by a Council of Seven members, the Court was founded following the raids of the Eternal Empire. The primary purpose of the Court was to guide the Empire's direction through manipulation of Imperial resources and leaders. History When the Eternal Empire launched its raids to test the strength of the Republic and the Empire, the two factions joined forces, under the command of Darth Marr, in an attempt to hunt down and defeat their unknown foes. Darth Ravage and others were reluctant to donate their own resources to the fleet, resolved to let Marr handle the threat himself while they oversaw operation of the Empire. Marr's apprentice, Ari'essa Keteris, stayed behind to act as his voice within the Empire and assume command of the Sphere of Military Defense should the threat resurface. Marr's search led him to Wild Space where he - and the legendary Hero of Tython - were ambushed by the Eternal Fleet and taken back to Zakuul to submit to the power of the Eternal Emperor, Valkorion. Ultimately, both Valkorion and Marr were killed in the event while the Emperor's son, Arcann claimed the throne. The newly crowned Emperor quickly unleashed the forces of Zakuul upon the galaxy and made his military superiority apparent to all who would challenge him. With the loss of Darth Marr and fearful that the remaining Dark Councilors, such as Darth Ravage, would act impulsively to the detriment of the Sith Empire, a collection of Sith, officers, nobles and businessmen in the upper echelons of Imperial society, brought together by Keteris, began working toward a common goal: saving the Sith Empire from its own pride and arrogance. Collectively, these figures called in favors, whispered in ears, altered/fabricated data, threatened and coerced whoever they could to ensure that the Dark Council sued for peace with their impossible enemy. The efforts of this collective ultimately proved successful and the Sith Empire was the first faction to submit to the superior power of the Zakuul, sending Darth Vowrawn as its emissary, agreeing to pay heavy tribute while adhering to armament restrictions, but living to fight another day. The Dark Council almost entirely disappeared following Imperial surrender except for Darth Acina who had immediately pressed for peace without any influence from the collective and had proved instrumental in giving the notion of peace for survival a voice, Many within the collective subsequently pushed for Acina to claim the throne when it became apparent that the Empire was in need of centralized leadership and a new direction. With support from many of the most powerful figures in the Empire, Acina claimed the throne and became the next Empress of the Sith Empire. In the Shadows of Zakuul As the Eternal Empire reigned over the galaxy, many within the Sith Empire began discussing a rebellion, citing Sith Doctrine and using the rhetoric of strength and broken chains. From the throne, Acina eliminated these dissenting voices, reminding her people that war with the Eternal Empire was not winnable. Of course, Acina only voiced this opinion to pacify the Eternal Empire as, in secret, she had ordered many of her closest military advisers and leaders to begin rebuilding the Sith fleet. Unaware of their Empress' plan, a faction within the Empire began plotting an assassination against Acina, intending to seize the Empire and take the war to Zakuul. A member of the collective that had helped win peace, and thus survival, for the Sith Empire, Darth Harad, became aware of this plot and informed the Empress who responded in kind by sending the Imperial guard to wipe-out this rebel faction. Darth Harad, aware that the Empire would never be content existing under the thumb of another faction, gathered the original members of the collective and proposed the creation of a secret faction within the Empire that sought to guide and change it, for the good of its people. Many within the gathering agreed, including the late Darth Marr's apprentice, Darth Ari'essa, who reminded the assembled elite that her master had been the first to put his pride behind him when it came to the longevity of the Sith legacy, but that he also placed himself in a risky position as the representative of such ideology. She reminded the group that the successful execution of their mission would only come to fruition if their organization remained hidden from the eyes of the Empire at large, influencing it when necessary. Darth Harad added, as a final note, that a key tenet of their organization would be the abandonment of infighting, that such lowly behavior would spell the end of their noble purpose. After the speaking had ended, the gathering agreed to call themselves the Court of the Revenant and elected Harad to be its leader. Under Harad's direction, the Court successfully prevented two further assassination attempts on Acina;s life, adjusted a policy that prohibited the elimination of acolytes on Korriban in totality (citing that the Empire could not afford to lose able-bodied warriors), and caused the disappearance of individuals who sought to use their powerbases to attack Eternal patrol ships at the risk of causing irreversible conflict. Further, it was responsible for uncovering intel that proved that the Hero of Tython was still alive and being held captive on Zakuul. Upon this discovery, the Director of SIth Intelligence, Lana Beniko departed from Sith territory, tracked by agents of the Court who observed her progress and reported back to the Court with their findings. Unsurprisingly, she traveled to Zakuul, meeting up with Koth Vortena and eventually freeing the newly-dubbed Outlander of his prison. According to Skytrooper communication networks, the trio had met up with a former Knight of Zakuul known as Senya Tirell and left the planet on an ancient, legendary warship: the Gravestone. After a showdown on Asylum with Emperor Arcann, the Outlander escaped once again with his crew, traveling to a planet in deep Wild Space called Odessen where he began construction of a base for his new resistance effort. Thanks to the foresight of Darth Harad, agents had been planted in the Outlander's crew and regularly updated the Court with news of the growth of his resistance. Unfortunately, Harad also drew disdain from many within the ranks of the Court who believed that his policies and vision for the Empire mirrored the Jedi and accused him of betraying the Sith way of life for his fantasy. A week later, the leader of the Court was found dead in his bed with several holes in his chest, obviously the result of a lightsaber assault. In the aftermath, the Court agreed that their mission needed to balance the greater good of the Empire with the core values of the Sith, a seemingly impossible task. They also agreed that a single leader, even in the Court, would be vulnerable to assassination or betrayal and elected a council of seven to lead the Court into the next age. Out of the Shadows As the Outlander began gathering more and more support, attracting heroes from both the Empire and the Republic who brought resources, weapons, bodies and ships, the Court began influencing Acina's advisors to invest more resources in the reconstruction effort of the Sith fleet and committing acts of benevolence, in the name of the Outlander's resistance, to draw the ire of Zakuul away from the Sith Empire. Their plan worked once more, Emperor Arcann's rage, directed at the Outlander, became an obsession and he began furiously hunting down the former Jedi Knight until he was defeated aboard his flagship over Odessen. When Arcann's sister, Vaylin assumed the Eternal Throne, the Court became nervous, unsure of her intentions or how she would approach the Empire's treaty with Zakuul. She wasted no time revealing her motivations and unleashed the full might of the Eternal Fleet against Voss for reasons that were not apparent to the Court at the time. This outright assault on a neutral planet indicated to the Court that Vaylin cared little for agreements if they came between her and what she wanted. They deployed their agents to implore Acina that joining the Outlander's effort would be to the Empire's ultimate benefit, that the combined power of the Alliance and the Empire could stand against the Eternal Fleet and free the galaxy from Vaylin's tyranny. She agreed and personally led the mission to Voss, saving the day and earning an alliance with the Outlander.